I ended up feeling very sorry for myself last week when I came down with a nasty cold. I have been extremely run down, so it's no surprise really. I stayed home sick last Thursday; I hadn't really been functioning too well on Wednesday, and I don't think it's fair to charge clients the extra hours it takes me to do things when my head is ultra fuzzy, nor is it fair to spread the germs around. I've had a number of sick days already this year from similar things (constantly being run down and hence catching little nasties all the time), so I decided to work the full week this week even though I am only paid for 4 days.

After a pretty full day of sleeping last Thursday, I was starting to feel slightly better on Friday, which is a good thing, because I went off to an Ayurveda retreat that night. The venue (in Lesmurdie) was great - very tranquil. The aim of the weekend was both detoxification and rejuvenation, and it worked a treat! While the vegetarian mostly Indian (ie spicy!!) food wasn't particularly to my liking, and going to bed at 9 pm and getting up at 5:30 am were definitely not what I would normally do at home, I had a relatively large amount of energy on Saturday despite my cold.

The weekend was awesome, and I would recommend the retreat to anyone, even if some parts were mildly unpleasant (the herbs we had to take to detox, and applying mud packs in May - wandering around in a bikini at sub 20 degree temperatures is not my thing), there were many, many pluses (1.5 hour full body massage, qi gong lessons with Bennie, lots of relaxation time).

I was a little disappointed that Juliet wasn't waiting by the door for me when I got home (she was allowed outside on the weekend - far more interesting than seeing mummy again for the first time in 2 days), but it didn't take long for her to realise I was home. She came bounding inside with her little tail twitching like mad, which she does when she is excited, usually reserved for when she thinks she is about to be let outside. It was nice to be home again, and even nicer to be home with a clearer head, having gotten plenty of sleep for a change on the weekend, and being a lot less stressed.

I went to bed just after 9 pm again on the Sunday night, and was impressed that I automatically woke up at 5:30 am again yesterday morning. So I got up, practised my qi gong, before heading off to work and arriving a little early for a change! I went to bed just before 10 pm last night, and again woke up early (without using an alarm clock), though I "slept in" until about 6:20 am this morning. :P

I've tried to keep my stress levels a little lower than usual, but it's not easy. I had a number of things I wanted to do early at work this morning, so I arrived at 7:15 am... to find my $#($%( access card wouldn't let me in the building still. As a staff member, I'm supposed to have full access. I spent most of last year going back and forth trying to get the technicians to believe me that my card wouldn't work, and finally they sorted it out. I think I was able to use my card once, and now this year I can't use it again. I'm utterly, utterly fed up with my workplace and my job. *sigh*

Calm blue ocean, calm blue ocean...

Well, at least Big Brother is on again - the new season (4th) started on Sunday. I must admit I have been addicted to Big Brother since halfway through the first season when, after thinking it a thoroughly stupid idea, I stumbled across an episode one day.... I don't know why it is so addictive - it's not like anything particularly interesting actually happens! Still, it is enforced relaxation time, every night at 7pm, especially now I don't have a laptop anymore. My life is so sad sometimes...